Tourism industry players welcome FM move, call it a much needed step

The announcement by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday to revive the tourism sector battered by the COVID-19 pandemic is a much-needed step for its revival, industry players said.

The government will provide free visas to the first 5 lakh tourists visiting India, Sitharaman said, adding that financial support would be provided to more than 11,000 registered tourist guides, travel and tourism stakeholders.

Welcoming the announcement, Thomas Cook India Group MD Madhavan Menon said, ''...this is a much-needed step towards the revival of tourism - a sector that is a significant contributor to the GDP, foreign exchange receipts and employment generation - with a cascading force multiplier effect on allied sectors''.

The three-pronged approach for the sector covers a 100 per cent guarantee for loans up to Rs 10 lakhs per government-recognised Travel & Tourism stakeholder (TTS), up to Rs 1 lakh financial support to over 11,000 licensed guides at state/regional level, and 5 lakh gratis visas that will serve to catalyse much needed inbound inflows, he added. The stimulus announcements are a reflection of the government's focus on the travel and tourism sector and augurs well for the industry, while simultaneously building consumer confidence in travel, Menon said.

Stating that it was a very significant move by the government and ''we welcome it'', Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI) Vice President Gurbaxish Singh Kohli said, ''The Loan Guarantee Scheme for the COVID affected sector and the additional 1.5 lakh crore under the ECLGS scheme will go long way in helping the sector bounce back''.

However, FHRAI has requested the government to extend the tenor of the Loan Guarantee Scheme for at least 10 years and to offer direct grants to the hospitality sector as the revival is extremely difficult without any direct support from the government, he added.

''The free Tourist Visa for 5 lakh tourists is certainly beneficial, however, we also request the Government to incentivise domestic tourism as well,'' Kohli said.

Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO) President Rajiv Mehra said, ''We are grateful to the government for recognising our distress and making these announcements for providing relief to the tourism sector. We are hopeful e-Tourist Visa will open soon and appeal to the Hon'ble Prime Minister that visas for a duration of 30 days should be free for all those who apply for Visa till March 31, 2023''. Hailing the move, Hotel Association of India Secretary-General MP Bezbaruah said, ''The FM's announcement on free visas has a very strong symbolic message that we have the confidence to welcome visitors and that tourism and hospitality is a strong pillar of post-COVID economic recovery strategy''.

HAI sincerely hopes that such measures will be logically followed by measures to make the industry recover and be ready to welcome tourists, he added.

In a similar vein, EaseMyTrip Co-founder and CEO Nishant Pitti said, ''We are glad that the impact on the travel and tourism industry has been recognised and we welcome the relief measures introduced by the government''.

The sector has witnessed one of the highest contractions since the pandemic and we believe that the credit relief provided will play a crucial role in reviving the economic activity of the sector, he added.

''Tourist guides and other travel stakeholders are the backbones of the industry and we believe that the special outlay of funds will enable them to rise from the challenges that they have faced over the past year and a half,'' Pitti said.

With the increased pace of vaccination in the country, EaseMyTrip also believes that the proposal to provide free tourist visas to the first 5 lakh tourists is well-timed and is a strong step in boosting the country's inbound tourism as well as the economic activities and sectors that are dependent on it, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)